Derrick Rose = MVP
Aside from the Miami Heat, or Carmelo, one of the most debated topics this NBA season has been who is the alpha dog point guard? At the start of the season I could see the argument for all the big names (Paul, Rondo, Rose, Westbrook, Williams.) However the past month or so, Derrick Rose has risen to a level above all those aforementioned gentlemen.
Rose is an absolute beast. Not only is he the best PG in game right now, he is one of the best players, garnering some MVP talk. How can you possibly argue it? Is there any player more valuable to his team than Rose is to the Bulls? As of this writing, the Bulls are 31-14, good enough for 3rd place in the Eastern Conference. Did anyone outside of Chicago actually think this was possible? Sure they have a revamped lineup, but I was expecting 4th seed at best, but more than likely a 5th. And on top of all that, Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah have missed a significant number of games. Rose has absolutely carried this team (with some contributions from Luol Deng among others.)
The knock on Rose has always been that he has no outside shot. Probably not on a Rondo-like level, but not adequate enough to be a premiere guard in the NBA. Well he has silenced the nay-sayers this season. A career 32% 3 point shooter has raised it to nearly 38% this season. Along with raising his free throw percentage to nearly 82% from a career average of 78%. Is there room for improvement? Absolutely, but he has given us no reason why he can't continue to improve throughout his long career.
Rose has the potential to be a superstar in the NBA. I know that word gets thrown around a lot, but he just strikes me as the next big thing. (And for the record, my definition of a NBA superstar is one that is relevant now, and even a non-NBA fan recognizes the name. So I truly think there is only three. Kobe, LeBron, Wade. Close but cigar goes to Carmelo, Amare, CP3, Bosh only by association, Durant, Dwight Howard, and Rose. Shaq used to be a superstar, but if you would ask a non-fan if he still plays, I'm guessing a majority would say no. He also isn't a stud by any stretch these days, just more of an attraction and chemistry guy.) Rose is the poster-boy in the United Center, and getting more attention there since anyone not named Jordan. And he seems to enjoy and thrive off of that pressure. He wants to be the man, not just in Chicago but in the NBA.
Boy is he fun to watch. You can almost place money on the fact that he is going to have at least one up and under, reverse, or circus-style layup in the game. How about dunks? Brother has got hops! He has enough to be featured on SportsCenter every morning. I think that monster he threw down on Dragic last year is the best in-game dunk I've ever seen. I never get tired of seeing that replay.
If you were building the perfect PG, essentially you would start with Derrick Rose. Throw in Rondo's D and passing ability, Paul's dribbling, D-Will's toughness and strength, and Steve Nash's court vision, and outside jumper. The point here is that there is no perfect PG. But if you were to start building one, the foundation is Rose.
I read an interesting article yesterday that during the offseason craziness of free agent frenzy, Rose called Wade to see if he was interested in joining Chicago. Wade blew him off. Rose took it personal, and has since made it his mission to destroy everything in his path. (Figuratively speaking) Essentially what Rose is saying this season and every one after is, "Screw you Wade, Screw you LeBron, and you too-you coat tail-riding Bosh. Chicago is where it's at. I'm the best in the league. I'll blow by you both... all the way to the MVP."
Rose is an absolute beast. Not only is he the best PG in game right now, he is one of the best players, garnering some MVP talk. How can you possibly argue it? Is there any player more valuable to his team than Rose is to the Bulls? As of this writing, the Bulls are 31-14, good enough for 3rd place in the Eastern Conference. Did anyone outside of Chicago actually think this was possible? Sure they have a revamped lineup, but I was expecting 4th seed at best, but more than likely a 5th. And on top of all that, Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah have missed a significant number of games. Rose has absolutely carried this team (with some contributions from Luol Deng among others.)
The knock on Rose has always been that he has no outside shot. Probably not on a Rondo-like level, but not adequate enough to be a premiere guard in the NBA. Well he has silenced the nay-sayers this season. A career 32% 3 point shooter has raised it to nearly 38% this season. Along with raising his free throw percentage to nearly 82% from a career average of 78%. Is there room for improvement? Absolutely, but he has given us no reason why he can't continue to improve throughout his long career.
Rose has the potential to be a superstar in the NBA. I know that word gets thrown around a lot, but he just strikes me as the next big thing. (And for the record, my definition of a NBA superstar is one that is relevant now, and even a non-NBA fan recognizes the name. So I truly think there is only three. Kobe, LeBron, Wade. Close but cigar goes to Carmelo, Amare, CP3, Bosh only by association, Durant, Dwight Howard, and Rose. Shaq used to be a superstar, but if you would ask a non-fan if he still plays, I'm guessing a majority would say no. He also isn't a stud by any stretch these days, just more of an attraction and chemistry guy.) Rose is the poster-boy in the United Center, and getting more attention there since anyone not named Jordan. And he seems to enjoy and thrive off of that pressure. He wants to be the man, not just in Chicago but in the NBA.
Boy is he fun to watch. You can almost place money on the fact that he is going to have at least one up and under, reverse, or circus-style layup in the game. How about dunks? Brother has got hops! He has enough to be featured on SportsCenter every morning. I think that monster he threw down on Dragic last year is the best in-game dunk I've ever seen. I never get tired of seeing that replay.
If you were building the perfect PG, essentially you would start with Derrick Rose. Throw in Rondo's D and passing ability, Paul's dribbling, D-Will's toughness and strength, and Steve Nash's court vision, and outside jumper. The point here is that there is no perfect PG. But if you were to start building one, the foundation is Rose.
I read an interesting article yesterday that during the offseason craziness of free agent frenzy, Rose called Wade to see if he was interested in joining Chicago. Wade blew him off. Rose took it personal, and has since made it his mission to destroy everything in his path. (Figuratively speaking) Essentially what Rose is saying this season and every one after is, "Screw you Wade, Screw you LeBron, and you too-you coat tail-riding Bosh. Chicago is where it's at. I'm the best in the league. I'll blow by you both... all the way to the MVP."
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